Larry Shenk, Vice President of Alumni Relations, shares his notes, quotes and anecdotes from the world of baseball.

Impressive Debut

At 12:28 p.m., he walked out of the Phillies clubhouse in the left field corner of Bright House Field to the grass in the left field corner. He was wearing a red jacket so his number and name weren’t visible. But, the fans in that area knew and gave him a cheerful welcome.

Yes, Roy Halladay, #34, was making his Phillies debut. Began his pre-game routine by stretching and chatting with Carlos Ruiz, his new catcher.

12:39 p.m.–took off his jacket and did more stretching.12:41 p.m.–began long tossing with Carlos.12:48 p.m.–headed for the bullpen to warm up.12:57 p.m.–completed that session and began walking toward the third base dugout amid more scattered cheers.1:02 p.m.–drew the loudest cheer as Scott Palmer announced the Phillies starting lineup.1:08 p.m.–first pitch was a called strike.

Hall of Famer Robin Roberts drove over from Tampa. “Got to see him pitch,” he explained. After Halladay left the game, Robbie visited him in the Phillies clubhouse.

Game time temperature was 50 degrees, 3 degrees warmer than Game 6 of the World Series last November in New York.

Alumni MemoriesA daily feature will be spring training memories by Phillies Alumni, who were asked three questions: (1) Memories of their very first spring training; (2) What they liked the most about spring training, and (3) What did they like the least.

Ron Reed (RHP), 1976-83)“1966 with the Braves minor league camp in Waycross, GA. We were all housed in those ugly, old Army barracks. The whole spring training roster were roommates. Fondest memory was that I had just finished the year playing with the Detroit Pistons in the NBA and I thought the running the pitchers had to do was a joke. Everybody was gasping for air and I didn’t even break a sweat. Really enjoyed my years in Clearwater – golf, picking the dogs with Harry Kalas and a lot of beach time with my girls. Waiting for the season to start was the least fond memory. Couldn’t wait to head north to start playing for real.”

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